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Executive leaders of the Canadian Neutron Initiative working group and the inaugural Board of Directors for Neutrons Canada, a new not-for-profit corporation, met at McMaster University on November 30 and December 1 to transfer leadership of Canada’s neutron-beam infrastructure program to the Board.
Neutrons Canada was established on October 5, 2022 as a not-for-profit corporation with 15 member universities to govern, manage, and represent Canada’s infrastructure program for research and development with neutron beams. Establishment of the organization, with an independent board of directors drawn from government, industry, and academic sectors, completes six years of effort by the Canadian Neutron Initiative working group, currently led by University of Saskatchewan (USask) Vice-President Research Baljit Singh, and McMaster Vice-President Research Karen Mossman.
Now, Neutrons Canada’s independent Board will lead this organization forward to establish a comprehensive infrastructure program aligned with a National Neutron Strategy, which seeks to rebuild Canada’s capabilities for research with neutron beams, following the 2018 closure of the NRU reactor and Canadian Neutron Beam Centre at Chalk River Laboratories.
The neutron beam infrastructure program will be seeded by the McMaster-led $47-million Canada Foundation for Innovation-funded project, a collaboration of 17 universities, to develop a national neutron beam user laboratory and ensure access to international sources for Canadian scientists. A second project, valued at nearly $60M, is proposed by a collaboration of 18 universities, led by the University of Windsor. The neutron beam community is planning for further investments beyond these projects to meet Canada’s needs for access to these irreplaceable research tools.
Neutron beams are essential for both fundamental and application-driven materials research that addresses challenges such as climate change, a clean economy, safety, security, and health. Just like beams of light are used in a microscope to learn about materials, beams of neutrons scatter from materials to reveal details that cannot be observed with other scientific tools. With such neutron scattering measurements, scientists and engineers gain knowledge for innovations in materials that underpin many technology advances.
On November 30, Dr. John Barrett, President of Portolan Global Inc., was appointed the inaugural Chair of the Board of Directors for Neutrons Canada. Dr. Barrett is the former President and CEO of the Canadian Nuclear Association (2013-2019). He previously served as Canada’s Ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency and has held executive positions in the Privy Council Office, Global Affairs Canada, Office of the Governor General of Canada, and Department of National Defence.
Dr. Barrett leads a board composed of 10 highly accomplished individuals who have extensive leadership experience in universities, federal science-based departments and agencies, major research facilities, and the nuclear industry:
- John Barrett, Past President and CEO of Canadian Nuclear Association
- Karen Chad, Past VP Research of the University of Saskatchewan
- Kevin Fitzgibbons, Past Executive Director of Corporate Planning and Policy, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council
- Peter MacKinnon, Past President of the University of Saskatchewan, Past Interim President of Dalhousie University
- Kate Moran, President and CEO of Oceans Network Canada
- Bill Stirling, Past Director of the Institut Laue Langevin (France) and Past Director of the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (France)
- Dave Tucker, Assistant VP Research (Nuclear) of McMaster University
- Priti Wanjara, Lead, National Research Council Aerospace Thrust
- Bob Watts, VP Indigenous Relations and Strategic Programs at the Nuclear Waste Management Organization
- Steve Yue, Director of the McGill Institute for Aerospace Engineering
Barrett will lead this team to shape Neutrons Canada into a cohesive, pan-Canadian, university-led organization and program, and create an institutional voice for the neutron beam community of researchers in national considerations of Canada’s suite of Major Research Facilities.
On behalf of the board, Barrett extends the thanks of the Board to the Canadian Neutron Initiative working group, which steered the creation of Neutrons Canada. Having accomplished its purpose and passed the torch of leadership to Neutrons Canada, the working group will wrap up.
Quotes
“I am privileged to serve with such a distinguished group to rebuild Canada’s capabilities for research with neutron beams. Each board member brings essential insights and perspectives as we collectively establish our strategic vision for Neutrons Canada and operationalize this new organization. I thank the co-chairs of the Canadian Neutron Initiative working group, Karen Mossman and Baljit Singh, for their visionary leadership and laying a strong foundation for us to build on. The working group facilitated the development of the national neutron strategy, gathered support among university and industry leaders, steered the creation of Neutrons Canada, recruited an outstanding board of directors, and helped to secure an interim management team to support our work.” – John Barrett, Chair of the Board, Neutrons Canada
“As a nuclear research leader in Canada and home to the Canadian Light Source and the Fedoruk Centre, USask is proud to have collaborated with McMaster and others to steer the creation of Neutrons Canada. Access to neutrons, which complement and add another dimension to leading-edge research, is essential to our province and to our global contributions as we continue to build capabilities in nuclear science, quantum science, and related technologies.” – Baljit Singh, Vice-President of Research, University of Saskatchewan
“As Canada’s nuclear university, we’re home to facilities that will be a major part of the infrastructure program managed by Neutrons Canada to ensure that Canadian researchers have access to the advanced technologies they need to make ground-breaking discoveries with tremendous impacts in science, health, the environment and the economy. We have great confidence handing over the leadership of this new organization to Dr. Barrett and his outstanding team of board members. His experience, expertise and knowledge of the entire nuclear sector will ensure Canada’s neutron science community remains competitive on the global stage.” – Karen Mossman, Vice-President of Research, McMaster University
More information
About Neutrons Canada
Incorporated on October 5, 2022, Neutrons Canada is a not-for-profit corporation with an independent Board of Directors elected by member institutions that conduct research with neutron beams. The purpose of Neutrons Canada is to govern, manage, and represent Canada’s infrastructure program for research and development with neutron beams, including international partnerships that secure access to world-leading neutron laboratories, operation of Canada’s domestic neutron beam facilities, and national initiatives for future neutron sources, thereby enabling Canadians to address major social and economic challenges.
What is “research using neutron beams”?
The fields of research, for which beams from a bright neutron source are required, span the full spectrum of natural sciences and engineering, as well as certain areas of health research and the humanities such as treating cancer and non-destructive probing of historical artefacts. Neutron beams can probe anything from molecules and nanostructures to structural or functional materials and living systems. Just like beams of light are used in a microscope to learn about materials, beams of neutrons scatter from materials to reveal details that cannot be observed with other scientific tools.
About the Canadian Neutron Initiative
The Canadian scientific community initiated the Canadian Neutron Initiative (CNI) in 2015, aiming to establish a new, pan-Canadian, university-led framework for stewardship of Canada’s capability for research with neutron beams, and thereby enable a national program for research with neutron beams to continue beyond the planned 2018 closure of the NRU reactor and Canadian Neutron Beam Centre. The CNI working group is co-chaired by the VPs of Research of the University of Saskatchewan and McMaster University, and includes their counterparts at the University of Windsor, the University of Alberta, and Dalhousie University, as well as the President of the Canadian Institute for Neutron Scattering, which represents researchers who use neutron beams.
For media inquires, contact:
John Root
Executive Director, Fedoruk Centre
(306) 966-3376
john.root@fedorukcentre.ca
